


A Solder's View

by HQ_Wingster



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - War, Alternia-Focused, Battlefield, Bombs, Gen, Inspired by Real Events, One Shot, Out of Character, Sad Ending, Self-Sacrifice, Side Story, Soldiers, War Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-14
Updated: 2016-11-14
Packaged: 2018-08-31 00:21:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8555359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HQ_Wingster/pseuds/HQ_Wingster
Summary: "Nothing's ever certain in war except victory and defeat. We just got to win on what we know."*inspired by a true story*





	

**Author's Note:**

> A story that I did in the past before the show started airing. Probably OOC, but I'm really proud with where this story went.

To say that dying for your job was one thing. Yuuri thought about it. Correction,  _if he didn't think about it, it'd happen anyway._ Whenever someone asked where he was, a family member would lie between their teeth that Yuuri was working for the country. Working for the people. It wasn't entirely a lie. Yuuri indeed was working for his country and for his people. However, different thoughts always popped up when the statement was heard. Most thought Yuuri was part of a police force or was a fire fighter for a big city. Some thought he was a humble security guard, or a really patriotic person who wouldn't mind helping an old lady cross the street while holding her groceries. In truth, Yuuri's real profession was as important as those thoughts. If not more.

Yuuri understood why his family had to lie. He felt numb when he read their letters and their wishes that he'll be alright. Perhaps the hardest thing that scarred him was a touching letter from an old friend. Packaged with the letter were a few trinkets, a couple photos from the _“good old days”_ , and a preserved orange lily that had wishes written on its petals. Packages like this were rare to come by for Yuuri. Correction,  _a package like this was considered sacred in the eyes of the battlefield._ In a world where warmth and love were for the elite and ordinary, a battle zone only bred bad feelings and regrets. To earn a package with so much love in each word and object helped to persuade many to stand back up from the ashes of their defeat.

Those packages were long gone in Yuuri's mind as he scouted uncharted territory for the fifth time. Pencil by his lips and a hastily drawn map in his hands, Yuuri trudged through an open field. The grass grew wild and thick. It was a perfect place to set traps and bombs, but Yuuri was already an expert at finding them by other means than just using his eyes and foot. Carrying a long stick between your hands was the only instrument that divided life and death. Instead of losing your life, you were lucky if you lost the stick. Maybe that's why HQ suggested that Yuuri should team up with a partner. He seriously wondered if HQ thought he was stupid enough to lose a limb, but both had seen enough nasty accidents so the decision wasn't left in the air for a vote.

It made Yuuri feel a little better that his partner was a bomb mapper like himself. In any other setting,  _Viktor Nikiforov_ would’ve feigned ignorance that he and Yuuri had something in common. On a battlefield with a water bottle and a few crackers between them, the two men had to work together as equals or risk it all. It was an unspoken agreement.

Like Yuuri, Viktor also had a friend waiting for him to come home. He had a family that still held onto the hope that he would come home in one piece. The stream of letters that Viktor wrote daily was no lie. He had every intention to go home. Perhaps, he was the one that deserved it the most.

With a scar from a bullet that nearly shattered his knee cap, Viktor was demoted from being a foot-soldier and tasked to map out uncharted territory for the sake of his fellow men and women. At least Viktor was a quick healer. He may've walked with a permanent limp in his strides, but he had the most perceptive eyes and senses than anyone else in the army. Nonetheless, he was an injured man. He needed a partner, so he was stuck with Yuuri for the time being.

 _It could've been worse_ , Viktor thought when he saw who his partner was for the next three months in the god-forsaken place known as " _No Man's Land"._  Honestly, he was a bit bothered that he was partnered with a “newbie”, but Yuuri showed his intellect and strength during their missions. He may’ve been withdrawn and naive at times, but the man obviously knew what he was doing. Viktor just wished that Yuuri would stop shaking in his sleep.

No wanted to fight this war. It was a war for the sake of war. What else was there to add?  _Of course._ You add perfectly ordinary civilians into  _Hell's House_  and expect them to survive without scars. Night terrors weren't uncommon, but just hearing raspy breathing and squeaks during the night did no good for Viktor's sleep. He hated to admit it, but this was a battlefield.

Dreaming about a life you could've lived wasn’t going to help you in the long run. You needed to stay sane, and Viktor saw Yuuri's sanity slip a few times during the night when he rolled around in bed, begging for his family and dear friend. It made Viktor sick between his teeth. He never said anything to Yuuri whenever he woke up during the night. When Yuuri called out for Viktor during those tense moments, the latter would close his eyes and breathe softly. Turning over to a more comfortable side, Yuuri tried to get back to sleep.

Back to the open grass field before them, they charted as much as they could before they had to go back to HQ.

"We're good for today." Viktor whistled a little tune as he trudged through the tall grass. For once, a small smile tugged his lips. He glanced at Yuuri and saw his poor junior's knees shake with each step he took. Viktor narrowed his eyes and sighed. "Use that stick of yours. Be careful, though. Don't poke too hard or we're both not going to make it back in one piece."

The last part was a joke, and they both knew that. Still though, it didn't help ease Yuuri's growing anxiety as he rechecked his map to ensure that a bomb wasn't under his next step. Looking at the map and at the land around them, Yuuri jabbed his stick at the ground harder than he should have.

"We didn't venture far enough." He gritted his teeth. "What if we fight beyond where we mapped?"

Viktor waved his index finger in the air. "Nothing's ever certain in war except victory and defeat. We just got to win on what we know." Stopping where he was, a low sigh escaped Viktor's mouth as he wiped off the sweat on his neck. It was scorching, and the sun showed no mercy whatsoever. Viktor just wanted to strip out of his jacket so that he could feel a slight breeze. He didn't. His body may've been overheating, but his mind wasn't. "Yuuri, there's a lump over there. Be careful as you go around."

"Thank you." Yuuri walked around the lump with ease. "I'm very fortunate that you're here with me _. I don't think I could've made it this far without you_."

Whether it was from heat or from the blood rising to his face, Viktor was red.He scratched the back of his neck as he took a few more steps forward. When he got close enough to Yuuri, he mumbled how his junior should've been grateful to HQ instead. Viktor couldn't bring himself to look at his junior in the eye as he approached.

It must've been the heat or exhaustion mixed with nerves. It had to be one of them. Why else would Yuuri step somewhere he didn't check? He caught his mistake far too late as his foot sunk nicely into its step. He felt the spring wires of the trap tingle up his leg and paralyze his heart. His breathing froze. If anything, Yuuri just stood still. His eyes darted down to where his foot was. It was just a bunch of grass and a few flowers. Perfectly innocent in the eyes of the beholder. Perfectly dangerous for a wandering mind.

" _How low did your foot sink?"_   Viktor whispered. His breathing quickened. The noon heat had them both in its grasp as something much hotter was only a lift away from a boom.

_"It's literally right under my foot."_

Viktor didn't know whether to smile or run away. A quick laugh escaped from his lips instead. " _Yuuri, you did check. Right?"_

"..."

" _Oh my God."_ It was every man for himself. Yuuri couldn't run. Viktor could. Live another day or die with your junior. Or,  _stare at your junior as you try to figure out what to do_. Again, it was too hot. Viktor couldn't breathe. Tugging his jacket off, Viktor packed his map and rations into his jacket and hugged it against his chest. Tiptoeing slowly towards his junior, Viktor's hand hovered unsteadily over Yuuri's shoulder before touching it. Yuuri jumped, and Viktor had to ground him. Viktor jerked with his finger that Yuuri needed to remove his foot slowly. Not lift it. Scoot it over to the side. As Yuuri's foot scooted away, Viktor's foot took its place.

He felt the trigger under his foot. Viktor was no longer sweating at this point. " _Run_."

"I'm not leaving you behind!"

"What choice do I have?!" A lump the size of a grapefruit got caught in Viktor's throat. His voice grew softer as his eyes stared down at where his foot was. " _One of us has to go. There is no arguing over that."_

 _"Why can't it be me?"_ Yuuri whispered back.

 _Why does it have to be me?_ Viktor thought as he slowly raised his head. Yuuri stood side-by-side with him as equals. His feet were firmly planted into the ground. He wasn't going to move. Not one bit. Viktor nudged Yuuri's shoulder, but the latter was like a rock. He didn't move. Viktor pushed him harder, but his own strength left him. Both had families waiting, both had friends waiting, and both had dreams of leaving this war behind.

Viktor's arms fell to his side. "You have a friend waiting back at home, right?"

Yuuri nodded.

Viktor closed his eyes. " _You can't rob a child from his parents; you can't rob a_ _friend_ _from a_ _friend_ _."_

"What about your friend? What about your family? What about HQ? You're losing your life because of me! Because of a careless mistake on my part. Why?" Each sentence threw another spear in Viktor's heart until he couldn't bleed anymore. His adoring family, the friend that was waiting for his return, and the life that he always wanted. The memories flew by Viktor like doves in marriage. Except, these doves were crippled. Yet, they still flew.

He saw them. He saw them fly to a place where nothing mattered anymore. For the first time in years, Viktor wondered why he was here. What part of him wanted this? He remembered. To protect those he loved, and those he grew to love. Viktor looked at Yuuri. His junior still had fit doves. A little damaged but still healthy. It was better than this.

"Yuuri, take this." Viktor shoved his jacket into Yuuri's arms. "Listen to me. Use my map. Go back to HQ. You're smart. I know that you know where the rest of the bombs are. You'll make it out okay. I know that. When you're out of here, I want you to run like you've never ran before.  _Do you understand me?_ I want you to run so fast that my eyes can't catch you. I'm not lifting my foot until you're over the horizon."

"What do I tell the others?"

"Tell them that I was being careless as usual."

Yuuri snorted. "No one's going to buy that."

Viktor raised an eyebrow. "You'll be surprised." He nudged Yuuri. A broken smile was a fitting last smile. "Yuuri, HQ really needs those maps. You've got to run."

"I'll see you soon."

With a firm fist, Viktor punched his junior and Yuuri started running. Viktor's voice grew strong as he watched his partner go. "While this war is still on, I'll see to it that you survive. Even if I have to rise from my grave!"

Adrenaline rush? Fear? Courage? Was this even courage? Yuuri didn't stop running until an explosion echoed in his mind. It was a faint thud in his memories as he slowed down. HQ was only twenty meters away. He saw the tent. He saw the flying colors, and the soldiers that expected him  _and_ Viktor to come back home. Yuuri didn't turn around. He raised a strong fist into the air. It was the only thing that held back his tears.


End file.
